LONDON (SE) - Arsenal know the importance of not dropping points down the stretch as they try to secure a top-four finish. The Gunners also know, however, claiming maximum points will go much further as they face Fulham on Saturday at Craven Cottage.
With five matches remaining, Arsenal (17-9-7) are fighting with Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Everton for the final two Champions League spots since the two Manchester sides will claim the other two. Arsene Wenger's side clawed out a scoreless draw versus the Toffees at home on Tuesday but left lamenting the two lost points after creating the better scoring chances in the match.
"We should have won the game, but it keeps us in a strong position for the top four,'' said Wenger, whose team enters this match in fourth place, one behind Chelsea and two better than Spurs.
Oliver Giroud had two of the better chances in Tuesday's match, but should be welcoming the challenge of facing Fulham again. The French striker bagged a brace in the reverse fixture at Emirates on Nov. 10, including the match-tying goal in the 69th minute of a 3-3 draw.
With both Chelsea and Spurs also facing top-seven foes this weekend, the Gunners know leaving Craven Cottage with the maximum points will be vital to their Champions League aspirations.
"We always knew that this week was going to be a big week for us," midfielder Aaron Ramsey told the team's official website. "We've got four points out of two games so far. We're still unbeaten in a load of games and hopefully now we can finish the week off strongly and get a win at Fulham which will put us in a really strong position."
Fulham (10-10-13) did Arsenal no favours on Wednesday, losing 3-0 at home to Chelsea and extending their winless spell to three matches (0-1-2). Manager Martin Jol felt the match turned after an empty half-hour following strong play and breakdowns on defence.
"The frustration is playing well for the first half an hour, creating three or four chances, including in the first few minutes when Bryan Ruiz could have scored, and then conceding a goal because we didn't close (David) Luiz down," the Dutchman said."They're a fantastic team but I'm still disappointed that we didn't achieve more in the first 30 minutes."
The Cottagers need veteran striker Dimitar Berbatov to get back on track. The Bulgarian forward has failed to score during Fulham's winless streak, and they are unbeaten (6-4-0) when he finds the back of the net.
The sides drew 3-3 in this season's reverse fixture at the Emirates Stadium in November. Giroud and Lukas Poldoski staked Arsenal to a 2-0 lead in the first 23 minutes, only to see Fulham pull level before halftime and take a 3-2 lead in the 67th minute on a penalty kick by Berbatov, his second goal of the match. Alex Kacaniklic scored Fulham's second goal. Giroud, though, countered with the second half of his brace two minutes later to give the Gunners a share of the points. Arsenal midfielder Mikel Arteta missed a last-minute penalty to snatch victory for Wenger's side.
Arsenal have taken points in seven of the last eight matches (3-4-1) between the teams, but Fulham are 1-3-0 in the last four.
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